Human Resources – Double Standards

I recently got to thinking about my country, and the goings-on here. A lot is happening, a lot of uncertainty, a lot of bad, and some good that comes to notice from time to time.

The though that came to my head.. Is that well, why can’t we run the country like we run commecrial enterprises? Why can’t we have a proper Human Resources hiring cycle, where if you feel you are fit for a job, you apply for it, and hope that the company will call you?

You see, in any industry, to qualify for applying for a job is 1) relevant education, 2) preferably experience, 3) references. Then comes the interview stage, perhaps there are two, or three, a basic aptitude evaluation, then a technical evaluation, and finally goals and targets and how they align with the organization. It’s sometimes insane how much trouble us people in the industry go through to build our future, our professionalism, our skills and abilities, our reputation in the industry.

On the other hand, if you look at the politics of my nation, most or the “human resources” or politicians do not have relevant qualifications or experience. They don’t definitely have a proper degree from an internationally renown, or accepted university. Heck, most of them can’t even speak English properly. Well On that subject you can argue, but, these are local politicians, they don’t need English, well, accepting that, I would retort, I would prefer that if and when a politician — representative of my country — has the tiniest chance of visiting a foreign nation or being visited by a foreign deligation, I do not want to feel embarrased knowing that this person cannot represent my country properly.

This might seem totally against the normal “Democratic Process”, well, I am not saying that academics and grooming are the only sole selection criteria, the basics are necessary to qualify for the democratic process. If you are not educated, you cannot fathom or appreciate the advantages you have from education. Plus, If you are an outstanding statesman — statesperson for all you politically correct people — then the country’s “human resources department” should make sure that this individual is groomed and educated and trained for acting on a national and international level.

Coming back to the topic.

Why is it that we employees of organizations have a tough time earning a living and keeping a job, while, politicians seem to make do by just lying through their donkies — hope you enjoyed that — and living a great life? Understandably, we are critical to the success of any company we work for, as we have a responsibility, and we have to come up to the expectations, and return on the investment the company is making in us. And, God-forbid, if we slip up, or make mistakes, or cause millions of dollars of loss, or take part in embezzlment, we are either fired, or legal action is taken against us. On the flip side, what about the politicans, what happens when a leader of a nation makes a mistake, how “critical” is that, sometimes its not a loss in monetary terms, rather it’s a loss in prestige and respect on an international – global scale. What do you do with a politician when he or she (to be fair on both genders) becomes an embarrasment to the nation? Does the person get a call from the HR department, perhaps a letter is sent out informing of the first mistake, and that the third mistake will cause him to lose his/her job?

There has to be a way to select appropriate resources for appropriate jobs in the government, including, the leaders of the nation. They should be given the responsibility, authority, and their performance measured, say, bi-annual evaluation. Yes that would be brilliant, every politician gets an evaluation every six months, and two yellow cards means he’s out of the game!